The Material Girl still has it.
Madonna easily surpassed singer Lady Gaga and veteran rocker Bon Jovi as the highest-paid musician in 2013, Forbes said.
Madonna earned US$125 million (NZ$150 million), most of which was from her hugely successful MDNA tour, which grossed $305 million, as well as merchandise sold at concerts and a clothing line and fragrance.
“Madonna is living up to her nickname: the Material Girl tops our list of the top-earning musicians by a wide margin,” Forbes said.
Second-place Lady Gaga, 27, earned US$80 million and Bon Jovi, came in third with US$79 million.
Like Madonna, 55, they all had hefty earnings from tours. Lady Gaga’s latest tour brought in $168 million before it was cut short due to her hip injury that required surgery. Bon Jovi’s concerts gross more than US$3 million per city.
Forbes compiled the list of the 25 highest-paid musicians by estimating income for the 12 months between June 2012 and June 2013 using data from the trade publication Pollstar, trade organization RIAA, and information and sales tracking system Nielsen SoundScan. The magazine also consulted with industry lawyers, managers and some of the musicians.
Ticket sales, royalties, merchandise sales and business ventures were included in the estimated pre-tax income before deductions for agents, managers and lawyers.
Lady Gaga’s latest album, ARTPOP, was not taken into account because it was released after June 2013.
Country music star Toby Keith was No. 4 on the list with $65 million, and British rock group Coldplay slipped into the top five with US$64 million.
Although touring was lucrative for the top earners on the list, not all musicians go on the road and some have other sources of income.
Rapper and music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs, the top ranked hip-hop artist at No. 11 with US$50 million in income, earns the bulk of money from a deal with Ciroc vodka, Forbes said.
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– Reuters
